Clarifying Your Message

Written by SuperUser Account on 3/8/2018

In the first email of this series I'm going to show you one of the easiest ways to increase conversions, sales, and revenue.

Business owners are notorious for putting a marketing message out that most people just won’t understand. To them it makes perfect sense, and they can’t understand how everyone else doesn’t “get it”.

When you’re so close to your work and have been using your industry jargon for years, you tend to think it’s normal language for everyone.

On top of that, people think marketing needs to be cute and clever. In reality, It just needs to be clear and concise.

It’s no wonder we see websites all the time that say things like “Your Journey Starts Here” or “Trust is the Commodity We Exchange”. What does that even mean?

Kim and I have recently (as of this writing) become StoryBrand Certified Guides. StoryBrand is a framework that helps organizations clarify their message.

For 4 days we did a deep dive into what works and what does not in storytelling for business.

The biggest problem most organizations have is they make themselves the hero in their marketing story. They also get caught up in telling their story when they should be telling their clients’ story.

Screenwriters have been perfecting the craft of story for thousands of years. There is a framework they follow that is proven. This is why StoryBrand likes to say that Tommy Boy is the same movie as Star Wars.

“Both Luke Skywalker and Tommy are given specific assignments to save the existing power structure from being taken over by evil. They both have guides who give them a plan and struggle against an enemy who epitomizes evil. And moreover, they both have to accomplish something very specific in the end or their entire worlds will implode.

Add to that they’re both struggling with an identity problem: Do I have what it takes? And I won’t even bring up the father issues they have in common.”

This same framework is proven to work in business.

Here’s why a business should never position themselves as the hero of the story. The hero is often the weakest character in the story.

Let’s look at The Karate Kid for example.

Daniel is the hero of the story. He is this skinny, weak kid who is being bullied by Johnny. He doesn’t know what to do until he meets a guide, Mr Miyagi.

The GUIDE is the strongest character in any good story. Think about Mr. Miyagi. He was strong, confident, unshakeable. He could have taken out any of those Cobra Kai punks at any time. That wasn’t his job though. His job was to transform Daniel from scared and weak to confident and strong.

Your business should always be positioned as the guide. Your job as the guide is to make a transformation in your client.

Making your message as clear as it can possibly be while positioning yourself as the guide in your customer’s story will be a game changer for your business.

In January we put on our inaugural Momentum Conference. Leading up to the conference we were sending weekly emails to get people to register. We’d been getting 4 registrations on average with each of the emails we sent out.

I’d attended the StoryBrand workshop in December and taught my team the framework when we returned from our Christmas break. We reworked the Momentum email in the StoryBrand framework and received 28 registrations with that email.

We’d set a stretch goal of 150 attendees at Momentum. We found ourselves with 175 people registered and we had to cut off registration. We had people asking us to open a spot for them and some who just showed up without registering. The conference was an overwhelming success.

Our own website at 5 Stones used to have a big picture of the inside of our office and in large text said “We do BIG Ideas”. If you didn’t know our business you wouldn’t know what we did.

Now it has a picture of a confidently smiling business owner and the words “Your Marketing, Done ✓”. It’s very clear that we are a marketing agency and we do your marketing for you.

If you struggle to understand why your marketing isn’t working, your message probably isn’t clear.

So here are the things you can do yourself to increase conversions, sales, and revenue.

  • Get someone who doesn’t know your business to look at your website for 5 seconds. Then ask them to tell you what you do. If they can’t tell you, you have a problem.
  • In the top of your website, in the part you see before you have to start scrolling, make sure there are big words there that clearly explain what you do. If you're business is an auto repair shop, it may say something like "We Perform Maintenance and Repairs on European Cars". Then in sub-text it may say something like "Done right the first time for the price quoted". Just. Be. Clear.
  • Also in the top of the website, take a look at your hero image. I'm talking about that main image that represents your business. It's the first thing people see. Many people have something like a picture of their building there. I know we did at one time. This image SHOULD be a picture of your happy, smiling customer in most cases.

I've given you a few things to look at. If you currently have it wrong and you make these changes, it will positively impact your business. But there are 7 parts to this framework. Think of it as a recipe. If you don’t have all 7 parts, it doesn’t work as good.

I would love to help you clarify your message. This may be the best investment you’ll ever make in your business. Getting started is easy.

Step 1. Call me at 985-662-8419. We’ll talk for a few minutes and see if we’re a good mutual fit.

Step 2. We’ll meet and develop a clear and concise message that will have your competition wondering how you’re getting all of the work.

Step 3. Watch your business thrive!

What is it costing you to lose business to your competition because the story you’re telling isn’t clear? What is it costing you when you’re attracting the wrong type of client?

Having a clear message in a sea of confusion is going to set you apart as the clear choice in your market.

My commitment to you: I promise to deliver a solid return on your investment.

Call me today at 985-662-8419

Brian Walker
CEO - 5 Stones

P.S. - If this is something that you would like to learn to do on your own without hiring us to do it with you, just reply to this email and let me know. I’ll share some resources that will get you well on your way to clarifying your message on your own, including some workshops we'll be doing.

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